The Thicket

The Thicket (2024) is a gritty Western thriller that has its moments but ultimately falls short of its potential. Based on Joe R. Lansdale's novel, the film sets up an intriguing premise: a young man seeking to rescue his kidnapped sister, teaming up with a bounty hunter and a quirky group of outcasts. The cast, led by Peter Dinklage, gives solid performances, especially Dinklage, who brings a grizzled charm and intensity to his role. Juliette Lewis also shines in her eccentric supporting part (on par with the performance of Dinklage, or even better).

Visually, the film captures the rough, unforgiving world of the frontier, with a stark and at times beautiful atmosphere. There's a tangible sense of danger and lawlessness, enhanced by a strong score that keeps the tension simmering.

However, despite these positives, The Thicket feels uneven. The pacing drags in places, with long stretches where not much happens. Some of the supporting characters, while entertaining, don't get enough depth to feel fully realized. I found the meeting with some characters rushed too. The plot, which starts strong, becomes somewhat predictable, relying on familiar Western tropes without offering much new to the genre.

Overall, The Thicket has moments of grit and character, but its inconsistent pacing and lack of fresh storytelling prevent it from being more than an average watch. It's worth seeing if you're a fan of the genre or the actors involved, but it doesn't quite leave a lasting impact.

The story and plot was easy to become invested in. It has gritty, interesting, and engaging characters. The story is compelling, violent, raw, and unpredictable. The outlaws were very bad, and the good guys felt like real people. There were many very tense and exciting scenes. The scenery and settings were authentic to a turn of the century rustic western era. The character acting was flawless throughout. I also quite enjoyed the music track. Overall, this movie was well written, well made, well acted, engaging, interesting and worthwhile. I can easily recommend it, but, it's not suitable for children.

I nearly gave up in the first 10 minutes, they are so badly shot and cut.

"Oh god, is this going to be an IFC Midnight effort?" did I say.

But we held on. And suddenly. Without warning. We were watching this most *brilliant* film!!

It snuck up on us.

It's like the opening was done by somebody else in post, without any connection to rest of the project.

This really is a good film, it's an excellent film, it's possibly even a masterpiece. I don't know, I'll have to watch it again some day after the reality distortion has warn off.

It's trippy-as, and in that it reminds me of Dead Man by Jim Jarmusch. Another, excellent, 'Art Western'.

The Thicket seeeeeethes. It's a slow, increasingly nervous build to what you know is going to be one hell of a confrontation.

But it doesn't bore you, or even trust you! It gives you some stuff to entertain you with your popcorn along the way. It is full of awesome scenes!

Lewis deserves every kind of award for Cutthroat Bill.

Dinklage deserves the highest praise in the land for making the project happen.

All of the cast turned in superb performances.

The cinematography who cares (it doesn't even rate a mention these day - yes it's great in this film but it's good in complete piles of sludge too, often it's the only good thing about them).

The music is wonderful - it's like Brian/Roger Eno, or occasionally Boards of Canda. Electronic but not Ironic, it's subtle as hell, used sparingly and suits the mood.

From the absurd 5.something score on here I am guessing that nobody has seen The Thicket.

We need to get the word out and fix that!

If you haven't already, I highly recommend the original novel. The characters are much more hashed out, there is actual growth and change as the story progresses. The main story line more or less follows the novel, however, there is none of the emotional punch that the book was excellent at delivering. There is little chemistry among the main protagonists.

It all felt very rushed getting slotted into a 100 minute runtime. It has the same feeling of the failed "Dark Tower" film with Idris Elba. The actors gave it their best with a weak screenplay. Given the pull Peter Dinklage has, this should have been a 6-8 episode miniseries on HBO.

The Thicket is a decent film boasts a good cast; stars Peter Dinklage, Leslie Grace, Juliette Lewis, Esmé Creed-Miles, Levon Hawke and Macon Blair. West Texas. After his sister Lula Parker (Esme Creed-Miles) is kidnapped, a desperate boy Jack Parker (Levon Hawke) recruits by a fierce bounty hunter named Reginald Jones (Peter Dinklage) to track down a ruthless and violent killer known only as Cutthroat Bill (Juliette Lewis). So Reginald becomes the leader of the group of outcasts searching for the stolen girl. As he rallies a band of unlikely heroes including a grave-digging ex-slave Eustace Hollow (Gbenga Akinnagbe) and a street-smart woman, Jimmie Sue, (Leslie Grace) for-hire. Together they embark on a perilous quest to track down Cutthroat Bill that leads them into the deadly "no-man's-land" known as... The Thicket. Death comes fast in Texas !.

This is a nice Western with noisy action, thrills, chills , violent attacks , assaults and loads of action. The film deals with the perilous and risked way that the motley expedition carries out their journey to track down to Cutthroat Bill. Exciting, though it is too, the film is not without its thoughtful side. Peter Dinklage (Tyrion Lannister in Game of Thrones) plays a ruthless bounty hunter in this violent revenge Western set in the early oil era of the early 20th century in Texas, in a place full of oil wells, cold envoronment snowy landscapes and where the first motor vehicles such as motorcycles are already seen. The film is full of murderers, blood and redemption. In the movie many sad and brutal events happen being based on the novel of the same name , a mystery/suspense novel written by American author Joe R. Lansdale , released by Mulholland Books in 2013 , which was adapted by playwright Chris Kelley.: The Thicket, here Dinklage plays an eloquent and resentful bounty hunter who will help a young man to find his sister, kidnapped by a bank robber. Directed by Elliot Lester (Blitz, Aftermath), and co-starring Juleitte Lewis (From Dusk Till Dawn, Cape Fear), the film also has in the cast with Levon Hawke (son of Ethan Hawke and Uma Thurman), James Hetfield member of the famous hard rock group Metallica, Leslie Grace (Batgirl) and Andrew Schulz (Sneaky Pete).

The motion picture was professionally directed by Elliot Lester , delivering action and tension enough , although a little slow-moving at times. . This filmmaker is a fine craftsman who has directed some acceptable movies. Elliott's feature film ¨Nightingale¨, starring David Oyelowo and produced by Brad Pitt's Plan B, premiered in 2015 on HBO and earned David a "Best Actor" win at the Critic's Choice Awards. The film also received nominations at the Emmys and Golden Globes. His most recent film ¨Aftermath¨, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger & Scoot McNairy and produced by Darren Aronofsky. In addition, he is attached to direct the sci-fi thriller ¨Continuum¨ for Entertainment Studios with Josephson Entertainment producing. Lester has directed other important films such as: ¨Blitz¨ , ¨Sleepwalker¨,¨Love is the drug¨. In TV, Elliott recently sold ¨Say their names¨ to HBO, which he will direct. Elliott has previously directed multiple episodes of TV, including ¨Will¨ and ¨Containment¨ . Elliott is also an established music video director having worked with Avril Lavigne, Selena Gomez, and The Fray, among others. The Thicket(2024) rating: 6.5/10. Essential and fundamental seeing for Western enthusiasts .